Spanish consul in Boston sacked after bombings

Madrid, April 17 (IANS) The Spanish Consul in Boston was sacked for his behaviour in the wake of the bombings which took place at the end of the Boston Marathon Monday.

Pablo Sanchez-Teran, was sacked by foreign minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo for "failure to fulfil his consular obligations" as a result of Sanchez-Teran's decision to maintain the usual office hours in the Spanish Consul in Boston and close his doors just two hours after the explosion of two bombs at the finish line of the race which killed three people and injured over a hundred, reports Xinhua.

Ninety-one Spaniards were participating in the Boston Marathon but despite the presence of so many of his countrymen in the event who could have been victims or in need of assistance, the former Consul decided to shut his office.

He also failed to offer a contact number for the families of those Spaniards who were participating in the Boston Marathon, although fortunately no Spaniard was injured as a result of the attack. Meanwhile it was confirmed Tuesday that the Madrid Marathon, which is scheduled for April 28, will go ahead despite the Boston bombings.

Alejandro Blanco, the president of Madrid's bid to host the 2020 Olympic Games issued a communique Tuesday in which he stated: "A marathon and especially a popular marathon is a sporting celebration. It shows better than anything the effort, hopes and courage of thousands of people who battle themselves to finish the race. Sport should serve to unite people and go beyond ideologies and nationalism. More than ever we are with Boston today."

Blanco added that the Madrid 2020 candidacy would pay homage to the Boston victims April 28.